The tiger attacked the employee, identified as a 50-year-old man, injuring both his arms, the post said. He was taken to a hospital.
“The tiger’s caretaker was able to safely contain the tiger. The tiger is not injured,” the sheriff’s office said.
“All of us at Wooten’s offer our sincere sympathies to the employee and his family, and wish him a speedy recovery,” the statement said.
The conservation commission was notified of the incident, it said in its own statement, echoing the accounts of the sheriff’s office and Wooten’s. It described the employee’s injuries as “severe injuries to his hands and arms.”
“This is an active investigation and we’ll release additional information when available,” it said.
“This incident could easily have turned deadly,” PETA Foundation Associate Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement Debbie Metzler said. “But as long as the public believes it can ever be safe to pet a tiger, harass wild animals, or even step into their enclosures, this will happen again.”